Shabazz Muhammad: 4 Reasons UCLA Is the Wrong Choice for Top Recruit

One of the nation's top recruits, Shabazz Muhammad, surprised the college basketball world when he announced his commitment to UCLA over both Kentucky and Duke. Were the Bruins the right choice?

One of the wonderful aspects of college basketball is the fickleness of recruiting. Sometimes, the highly-touted recruit fails to reach his high expectations—see Perry Jones III of Baylor. Other times, the little-sought after recruit rises to stardom and shuns every team that passed on him.

One can never know how things will work out, but there are many contributing factors to help ensure the process of success.

I will tell you why Muhammad only hurt his early collegiate career with this decision to join the UCLA Bruins. Read on to find out.

UCLA and the Pac-12

With this announcement, Shabazz catapults UCLA to the third-rated recruiting class, according to ESPN, and possibly the best team in the Pac-12.

Unfortunately, being the best team in the Pac-12 conference is like winning a one-man race. What I am saying, is that there is not much competition for such a young, talented team.

Due to the lack of competition within the conference, UCLA will likely cruise through the most of the season—only seeing somewhat tough competition from Washington and Arizona.

How does this cupcake of a schedule hurt Shabazz? Well, unless the a Bruins make a deep run into the NCAA tournament, there will not be much to compare Shabazz to. Analysts often use matchups as a way to determine a player's value, and the Pac-12 will be lacking these opportunities.

If Muhammad starts producing highlight-reel plays and extraordinary numbers, analysts will always add doubt with the lack of competition.

Teams like Duke and Kentucky annually have schedules amongst the nation's toughest, as well as feature matchups against some of biggest stars in the country.

The National Spotlight

Although UCLA has a rich history and tremendous basketball prestige, the present has not been as kind to the Bruins as the past has, in terms of national coverage.

Since the days of coach Wooden, UCLA has fallen into the middle of the pack. Most recently, the UCLA Bruins failed to make the tourney in the 2011-2012 season with a record of 19-14.

Whereas perennial powerhouses Duke and Kentucky receive continuous attention, UCLA will be relying on Shabazz Muhammad to provide them the media revenue.

On top of being the nation's best recruit, one of the Pac-12 stars and the young leader of the Bruins—Shabazz will have an entire program's success to deal with. While no one knows whether this will create a star, or ruin a promising prospect, it is a risk Muhammad was willing to take. A risk too rich for my blood.

Going to Duke or Kentucky would have been safer for the young player, as he would be stepping through the same path as Anthony Davis or Austin Rivers—two highly recruited players who were groomed into carrying a program through the national spotlight.

UCLA vs. Kentucky

When looking at the programs of Kentucky and UCLA, there is a glaring difference that stands out above the rest—Kentucky stands as reigning national champions. UCLA, however, failed to make any sort of significant splash in college basketball for the entirety of their season, while not even being considered for the NCAA tournament.

Beyond the recent championship, Kentucky has proven once again that it is more of an NBA farm-team than a college basketball program. Six Kentucky players are considered as first-round draft talent, with four of them being lottery picks—to include national player of the year Anthony Davis.

Unfortunately for UCLA, their roster lacks a single legitimate draft prospect—one of the reasons Shabazz Muhammad chose the Bruins, in an attempt to reinvent their program. The pressure already seems overwhelming.

Choosing Kentucky over UCLA would ensure the young, talented Muhammad contends nationally for as long as he stays, and given the recent success in the draft, Kentucky would also provide the best avenue for his future career, success, stardom and financial ability.

There is no certainty in college basketball, therefore UCLA may prove to be an excellent match for Shabazz. Odds, however, give Kentucky the edge as to which program can handle a player to the caliber of Muhammad's and grant him a bright future both collegiately and professionally.

Ben Howland vs. Coach K

Ben Howland is by no means a slouch of a coach, and has clearly done a good job in building a relationship with Shabazz Muhammad.

Despite the previous statement, coach Howland cannot compare pedigrees with the coach of the Duke Blue Devils—Mike Krzyzewski.

Ben has two Final Four appearances on his resume, which fails in comparison to coach K's four national championships and 11 Final Four trips.

Granted, the Duke coach has been in the game for a much longer period of time, as well as having had a much more talented team year in and out. You cannot ignore, however, the arsenal of knowledge and experience the winningest coach in NCAA history could bring to a young Shabazz Muhammad.

To go along with the clearly better coach, Duke offers much more stability and security for Shabazz in terms of success.

By committing to the Bruins, Muhammad has turned his back on a team defending a championship, two great coaches (to include one that tops all others in the win column), national exposure on a level UCLA can't compete with and the chance to become not only the star of a team, but the face of college basketball.